The present application relates generally to systems and methods for automated diagnostics in marking systems and, more particularly, to methods and apparatus for generating and displaying printer diagnostic information based upon a context in which the underlying printer fault was generated. The subject methods and apparatus are particularly well suited for use in commercial printing systems and in stand alone office printing devices and will be described with particular reference thereto. However, it is to be appreciated that the methods and apparatus described herein are applicable in a wide variety of other environments including, but not limited to, networked printing devices including marking devices connected to the internet and others.
When a user has a problem with a printer, typically the user will first attempt to ascertain and fix the problem using whatever built-in diagnosis tools were provided with the printer, if any. For some printers, the built-in diagnostic tools may be in the form of a user manual or diagrams on the user interface showing possible locations of printer jams and out-of-supply notices. For printers linked to a personal computer, the install disk of the printer may include diagnostics in the form of a utility program to be run on the user's personal computer. Utility programs may offer suggestions for relatively minor problems, such as cleaning ink jets or replacing toner cartridges to improve print quality or how to ascertain a printer jam. When the local diagnostic aids are insufficient to solve the user's printing problem, the user is faced with the decision of taking the printer to a service center (which usually only occurs if the printer is small enough for the user to transport) or requesting a service call from a service technician.
In many cases, however, before a service call is placed with a service representative, the user attempts to fix the problem using diagnostic tools built into the printer. Many low and moderately priced printers include an operator interface panel with mode and control buttons and a panel adapted to display simple fault handling messages. As an example, the operator may be directed to “clear paper jam in area 1” by the printer after an internal printer fault causing a paper misfeed or mishandling. It is to be appreciated jammed paper could be the result of a more sophisticated or complicated cause than debris in the paper path, for example. In most cases, however, the root cause of the printer fault is transitory or random and, thus, does not warrant much attention beyond simple remedial actions falling within the capability tool set of typical consumers.
In the above example, a transient intermittent xerographic power supply fault causing the feed rollers to hesitate might be the underlying culprit in crumpled paper in the paper path. It is not necessary or desired, however, to direct the operator's attention to the xerographic power supply portion of the printer because of many reasons not the least of which includes the potential hazards there. More importantly, the fault is likely transitory. It is essential though that the paper jam is cleared from the paper path before successful printing can be resumed. Accordingly, in most cases, simple operator messages which provide instructions for resolving a symptom, i.e. mangled paper, to an underlying, real or root cause, i.e. xerographic fault, is adequate.
In situations when the underling or root cause of a printer error is sustained and beyond the capabilities of the end user to resolve, simply repeating messages with instructions to the operator on steps to be taken to resolve the resultant symptom of the problem such as, for example, to clear the mangled paper, adds to the frustration level of the user. Eventually, the operator may become annoyed enough to call a service technician to fix the “unseen” underlying problem.
In some more expensive mid-range and upper level printing apparatus, simple operator messages are provided together with an encoded underlying fault description. As an example, a “09-220 fault” on the 61xx family of Xerox copiers is raised when the photoreceptor belt hole sensor fails to detect the belt hole. Currently, the directed operator action is to clear the inevitable paper jam which occurs when the system is shut down. Although “09-220” portion of the fault message includes encoded information, it is incomprehensible to the operator. Further, since it is displayed each time in conjunction with the regular “clear paper jam” portions the operator would likely believe that the messages are one in the same. For infrequent occurrences of photoreceptor belt hole sensor failure, simply clearing the paper jams which would naturally occur is adequate. However, if the frequency of failure becomes large enough, the customer can become very annoyed.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a method and apparatus for contextual diagnostic message handling. Preferably, based upon one or more fault frequency metrics, a first diagnostic message displayed on an operator interface is replaced with a second diagnostic message based on a frequency of occurrence of the underlying fault. Such a system would alleviate the aggravation associated with displaying diagnostic messages relating to symptoms of a fault when an underlying or root cause of the fault is not repairable by the end user.